Oregon hands historic loss to Trojans

Trojans safety Josh Shaw watches as Oregon running back Kenjon Barner runs into the end zone for the score. The Ducks beat the Trojans, 62-51, Saturday at the Coliseum..PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Passing and running at will, the Ducks gained more yards and scored more points than any opponent in USC history, as Oregon picked up a wild 62-51 victory over USC in front of 93,607 at the Coliseum.

"They've moved the ball like that on a lot of of people," USC coach Lane Kiffin said of the Ducks (9-0, 6-0). "I didn't think they would do it on us."

They did, and now expect Kiffin's father, USC defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin, to feel the heat. Oregon put up a record 62 points on USC, six more than Stanford did in triple overtime last year. The Ducks gained 730 yards, far beyond the record (623) set by Notre Dame in 1946. Oregon's Kenjon Barner rushed for 321 yards, far beyond the previous record for a USC opponent (Penn State's Curtis Enis, 241, in 1996).

The Ducks didn't pull any trickery. They didn't, fundamentally, do anything different than they did last year, when the Trojans held them to 35 points at home. And yet, even though this year's version of the USC defense is supposed to be deeper, more experienced and more talented, the Trojans got throttled.

The worst thing that can be said about a football team is that it quit. USC (6-3, 4-3) did not quit. The Trojans trailed 21-3 less than a minute into the second quarter and could have been on their way to a historic blowout loss, but USC trailed only 34-24 at halftime and twice pulled within three points in the second half.

The Trojans found a panacea for their penalty woes -- they had only three, for 25 yards -- but not their turnover woes. The Trojans lost the ball three times, all in Oregon territory and twice inside the Oregon 20. Matt Barkley threw two poor interceptions and Marqise Lee fumbled deep in Oregon territory late in the first half, when the Trojans could have pulled within three points.

Barkley completed 35 of 54 attempts for 484 yards and five touchdowns, Lee caught 12 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns (and also set a Pac-12 record with 251 kick-return yards) and freshman Nelson Agholor caught six passes for 162 yards and one touchdown, but USC got into a second-half offensive slugfest with the Ducks, and eventually the Trojans' arms got tired.

A 36-yard pass from Mariota to Josh Huff put Oregon up 48-38 and then USC went four-and-out and had to punt for the first time. Oregon then drove 85 yards and a Barner fueled-drive and put the game out of reach when Barner scored from five yards out for a 55-38 lead.

"It just kept feeling like we would make a stop," Lane Kiffin said.

Monte Kiffin's base defense, the Tampa 2, stopped nothing. Barner ran at will and was rarely touched at the line of scrimmage during his 38 carries, which included five touchdowns. Ducks quarterback Marcus Mariota, a freshman who had never before played in front of such a large, hostile crowd, picked apart the USC defense (20 of 23, 304 yards, four touchdowns) and also ran 15 times for 96 yards.

If anyone could stop the high-powered Ducks, it was supposed to be the Trojans, with their veteran safeties, super-fast linebackers and aggressive linemen. Just as they were last week at Arizona, though, the Trojans were sliced and diced by a quick-strike spread offense, and at no point in the game did USC stop the Ducks.

Frankly, USC's defense looked slow, and the Trojans aren't slow. That points to system issues, and after the game, Lane Kiffin (somewhat surprisingly) admitted that perhaps the Trojans need to look at changing their defensive scheme. In the Kiffins' third season, the Trojans seem to be regressing defensively.

"That's a good question," Lane Kiffin said of changing the defensive scheme. "If you have back-to-back games like that, with 600-plus yards (against), you have to look at what we're doing."

As the coach spoke in the postgame press conference, Barkley sat to his left, alternately staring glumly at the ceiling and the table. Many observers expected this ultra-talented USC team to tap-dance into the BCS championship game. Now there's a very real possibility that USC might finish with a 6-6 record.

The Trojans, amazingly, still control their Rose Bowl fate. Arizona's loss to UCLA on Saturday means that if the Trojans beat Arizona State and UCLA in the next two weeks, they will earn a rematch with Oregon in the Pac-12 championship game on Nov. 30 in Eugene.

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Trojans safety Josh Shaw watches as Oregon running back Kenjon Barner runs into the end zone for the score. The Ducks beat the Trojans, 62-51, Saturday at the Coliseum.. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Nelson Agholor looks to make a catch for a touchdown but it was ruled that he didn't have possession of the ball in the first quarter against Oregon. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Oregon wide receiver Josh Huff is lifted high after making one of Oregon's touchdowns against USC in the first quarter. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee makes a catch deep in Oregon territory and takes it in for a touchdown in the first quarter. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans cornerback Nickell Robey (21) blocks a point after attempt by Oregon kicker Rob Beard (93) in the second quarter Saturday. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee (9) lets a pass slip through his hands in the end zone with Oregon cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu (14) defending. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee (9) is upended by Oregon defensive back Terrance Mitchell (27) just short of the end zone on a third quarter drive by the Trojans. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee fights to get control of a pass for a reception in the first quarter against Oregon. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
USC coach Lane Kiffin protests a call on a pass play early in the first quarter. Officials ruled Trojans wide receiver Nelson Agholor did not have control of the ball on a reception in the end zone before going out of bounds. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans linebacker Dion Bailey, left, can't get his hands on Oregon running back Kenjon Barner, right, in the second quarter of Saturday's game. Oregon beat the Trojans 62-51. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
One of the few times Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota is stopped Saturday was in the first quarter with a sack by Trojans defensive end Wes Horton (96) in the first quarter. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee tries to reverse course as he sees Oregon's defenders closing in Saturday. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojan players walk away as Oregon players celebrate with running back Kenjon Barner (24), after Barner scored a touchdown against the Trojans in the fourth quarter of Saturday's game. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Oregon players watch as Trojans wide receiver Marqise Lee streaks past on his way to an 84-yard run in the third quarter of Saturday's game. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans tight end Randall Telfer fights his way into the end zone past Oregon defensive back Terrance Mitchell in the fourth quarter as they trailed Oregon, 54-44. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Oregon players watch as Trojans cornerback Nickell Robey tries to grab an on-side kick before it goes out of bounds. Officials ruled that Robey did not control the ball before going out of bounds. Oregon beat USC, 62-51. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans quarterback Matt Barkley looks down field for a receiver in the first quarter against Oregon. Oregon beat USC 62-51. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans quarterback Matt Barkley gets ready to fire a pass in the first quarter against Oregon. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans quarterback Matt Barkley turns to fake a hand off to fullback Soma Vainuku in the 3rd quarter of Saturday's game against Oregon. The Trojans lost 62-51. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Trojans linebacker Anthony Sarao tries in vain to stop Oregon running back Kenjon Barner in the fourth quarter. PAUL RODRIGUEZ, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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